In support of Obama administration’s focus on cybersecurity, Council calls for cross-industry collaboration and increased education and awareness to protect payment data.
The PCI Security Standards Council, an open global forum for the development of payment card security standards, is urging merchants, banks, technology vendors and industry organizations to make payment security a top priority in 2015, in light of the Obama administration’s focus on cybersecurity.
By focusing on the continued development of strong industry-led standards and resources; technology solutions that devalue and protect data; and vigilance in making payment security a business-as-usual practice, the Council will help organizations of all sizes and across industries improve the security of payment transactions.
Industry-led standards and resources
Continued collaboration with the PCI community and other industry standards bodies such as EMVCo to ensure security standards are complementary and provide the strongest protection for payment data
Best practices and resources in payment security, including mobile, tokenization, skimming, ATM, e-commerce, wireless and cloud computing
Technology solutions
Working with the acquirer and the vendor community to provide the resources to merchants and others to leverage the latest technology in payments securely; including listings for EMV chip-enabled terminals, point-to-point encryption and mobile solutions
Partnering with the EMV Migration Forum, the Payments Security Taskforce (PST) and others to demonstrate the value of moving to EMV chip cards in the U.S. market, and the importance of a multi-layered approach to security that includes PCI Standards
Vigilance
- Merchant guidance on the latest threats and vulnerabilities
- Increased educational and training opportunities to foster a culture of ongoing security
- Participation in Data Privacy Day to encourage international awareness and adoption f strong security measures for data protection
“The President’s new emphasis on cybersecurity issues in this year’s State of the Union—coming after recent high profile attacks and before the U.S. transition toward EMV chip technology later this year—has moved these critical issues front and center on the national stage,” said PCI SSC General Manager Stephen Orfei. “For us in the payments industry, this is welcome attention to the critical importance of making security a 24/7 priority to protect consumers’ sensitive financial data. Vigilance is a must. Only a combination of people, process and technology, and a focus on making security business-as-usual practice will help thwart these threats.”
